Tripoli, Lebanon – Lebanese army tanks pounded a shadowy group suspected of ties to al-Qaeda on Sunday, targeting its hideouts inside a Palestinian refugee camp after hours of clashes killed at least 22 soldiers and 17 militants.
The violence between the army and the Fatah Islam group erupted in the northern port city of Tripoli and in the adjacent Nahr el-Bared refugee camp. It was the most serious fight the army had in Lebanon in more than a decade and the worst violence to hit Tripoli in two decades.
The clashes between army troops surrounding the camp and Fatah Islam fighters began after a gun battle raged in a neighborhood in Tripoli, a predominantly Sunni city known to have Islamic fundamentalists, witnesses said.
Fighting spread after police raided suspected Fatah Islam hideouts in several buildings in Tripoli, searching for men wanted in a bank robbery. A gun battle ensued, and troops were called in to help police.
Militants then burst out of the refugee camp, seizing Lebanese army positions, capturing two armored vehicles and ambushing troops. They killed two soldiers on roads leading to the city.
Hundreds of Lebanese applauded the army’s tough response in a sign of the long- standing tensions that remain between some Lebanese and the estimated 350,000 Palestinians who have taken refuge in Lebanon since the creation of Israel in 1948.
At the same time, a group of militants holed up in a building in Tripoli fought off army and police units for hours before finally losing the battle. Security officials said some of the militants had worn explosive belts but did not have time to detonate them.
The Lebanese Broadcasting Corp. TV station reported that among the dead militants were men from Bangladesh, Yemen and other Arab countries, underlining the group’s reach outside of Lebanon.
Security officials said 22 soldiers were killed and 19 were injured along with 14 police officers who were hurt. They said 10 militants were killed in the raids in Tripoli and seven more were killed in the refugee camp.
Medical officials said 17 Palestinian civilians were wounded, with three women and four children in serious condition.
